Insulated rail-joint.



No. 868,518. PATENTED OCT. 15, 1907.

B. WOLHAUPTER;

INSULATED RAIL JOINT. APPLICATION runn nov. a. 1906.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

No. 868,518. PATENTED 0GT.15, 1907'. B. WOLHAUPTER.

INSULATED RAIL JOINT. APPLIGATION FILED NOV. 3. 1906 2 sums-SHEET 2.

3] mmntbz .B elzj a n11 W075 2) 0,0737! nT NT OFFICE.

Y., ASSIGNOR TO THE RAIL JOINT COMPANY,

A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

INSULATED RAIL-JOINT.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. '15, 1907.

Ap lication filed November 8,1906. Serial No. 342,524.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it knownthat I, BENJAMIN WOLHAUPTER, a citizen of the United States,residing at New York, in the county of New York and State of New York,have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Insulated RailJoints, of which the following is a specification.

\ This invention relates to insulated rail joints of the 1 type whereinan individual and independent metal base support is provided for eachrail end, while at the "same time thorough and complete insulation isprovided throughout the joint.

The general objects to be attairied by the present invention are thesame as those carried out in connection with the forms of insulatedjoints disclosed and claimed in a companion application'filed November8, 1906, Serial Number 342,523.

With these objectsin view, the invention consists in combination, andarrangement of parts hereinafter more fully described, illustrated, andclaimed. Y The essential features of the invention involved in adaptingthe divided or two-part base construction to joints of the continuousand similar types of rail joints are susceptible to structural changeswithout departing from the scope of the invention, but for illustrativepurposes there are shown in the drawings certain preferred practicalembodimehts of the invention.

In these drawingsFigure 1 is a sectional perspective view of a railjoint constructed in accordance with the present invention andillustrating the improvements in their application to that form ofinsulated rail joint represented'by the well known continuous type ofrail joint.

Fig. ,2 is a detail perspective view showing thematchthe opposite angleplied position-in Fig. l. I Fig. 3 is a sectional plan view on the line33 of Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is a sectional perspective View showing a. modifiedconstruction of insulated r il joint embodyingthe,present 1nvention.Fig. 5 is a perspective view of the oppositely arranged angle bars ofthe joint shown in Fig. 4 illustrating their matching relation andshowing the one end insulation idea along the non-supporting end of eachbar.

Like references designate corresponding parts in the several figures ofthe drawings. An insulated rail joint of the general type shown in thedrawings, embodying the divided or two-part base construction wherebyeach rail end has a separate surpporting base or base plate, includesthe service rails l and 2, and the opposite continuous side joint plates3 and 4 located respectively" -upon opposite sides of the i-ails; Eachof the side joint'plates eith'egiorm or: rail joint shown in Fig. 1 ofthe drawings-consistent a main continuous splice bar portion 5 havin'ghead and foot I flanges 6 and 7, respectively engaging beneath the headof the rails, 'andbver the base flange thereof. The foot flange 7of'eachside plate 3 and 4 extends over the inclined upper face of therail base at an obtuse angle to has formed integrally with. the outeredge thereof an outwardly projecting continuous reinforce and spiking lflange 8, and with an inwardly projecting base member or base plate 9designed to constitute a supporting and reinforcing base for one of therail ends.

Tile/base member or base plate 9 of each side joint plate is usually ofa length approximately equaling this may be varied to suit differentconditions where the joint is to be applied, but in all forms oftheinvention this base plate proper 9 of each side plate is located whollyatone side of the transverse center of the plate, so that such 'plate isprovided with what may be termedlone end portion having a supportingbase, while the other end portion may be termeda nonsupporting endsAlso, in order to preserve uniformity of support throughout the entirejoint, the separate base plates 99 are preferably duplicates in designand arrangement and are disposed respectively at opposite sides of thetransverse central line ofthe joint also be observed that the oppositeside plates 3 and 4, with their separate and'independent base plates 9,preserve a matching relation, inasmuch as one bi the side plates,designated by the-numeral 3, has its base plate 9 projected inwardlyfrom one end portion thereof, while the opposite sideplate, designatedby the numeral 4, has its base plate projected inwardly from thecorrespondingly opposite end portion thereof. With this arrangement thebase plates of the opposite side joint plates, while lying in the samehorizontal tion in order to extend well beneath the individual railbases engaged and supported thereby. In the application of the sidejoint plates to the service rails an intervening gap or space 10 is leftbetween the i11- ner or adjacent'edges of the base plate 9, which spaceis designed to be suitablyinsulated, preferably by having the base 11 ofthe insulating end post 12 drop .sufliciently below the rail'bases toextend into the said intervening or space 10. While'this utilization ofthe insulating end post for the rail ends is a practical method ofproviding the necessary insulation between the-innor ends of the baseplates 9', other insulating expedients may obviously bc resorted towith= out affecting or departing from the invention.

The longitudinal edge13-of each base plate 9 is ar-- ranged inparallelism to and spaced from a narrow girder or'trussing flange 14projected inwardly from thelow'er, edge of the foot flange 7'of thedirectly opthe vertical plane of the main" splice bar portion 5, and

one-half thefull length of said side joiirtsplate, though as plainlyshown in Fig. 3 of the drawings. It will plane, aredisposed in spacedthough matching rela posit-e side platel This narrow girder flange ortrussing.

flange 14 is the portion of the metal left by theshearing or castingoperating along the non-supporting end of the side plate, that is alongthat end portionoi the side plate which'is not prdvided with a baseplate for a rail end. By reason of this construction, it will beobserved that the fiangeor flange portion 14 of each side plate formsanarrow continuation of the base plate and consequently materiallyreinforces and trusses the latter. I

When the side joint plates'are applied and the'several joint bolts 15tightened, a well defined space or plished by employing the fiangedorheaded insulating bushings 16 fitted in the bolt holes 17 of the-sidejoint plates 3 and 4, and whose flanges or heads are interposed betweenthe heads and nuts of the bolts and the outer faces of the side jointplates, as plainly shown in Fig. 1 of the drawings. 7

To complete the general insulation of the type of joint described,continuous side insulating sheets 18 are interposed between the sides ofthe rails and the rail adjoining faces of the side joint plates 3 and 4.In

this form of the inyention the insulating sheets are 7 shown asextending continuously'across the joint between the rail ends, and fromend to end of the side joint plates, while at the same time followingthe contour of the inner sides of said joint plates so as to insulatethem from the rail heads, webs, and base flanges.

Another feature to observe in connection with the form of joint justdescribed is that the same presents a construction well adapted to besupported or seated, as an entirety, upon a single track tie 19 locatedwithin the transverse vertical plane of the joint between the rail endsas illustrated in Fig. 1 of the drawings.

The modified form of the invention shown in Figs. 4 and 5 of thedrawings embodies the same mechanical elements as the form of jointillustrated in Figs. 1, 2,

. and 3 of the drawings, but an economical and effective arrangement ofthe insulation is suggested wherein instead of employing a full lengthside insulating sheet such as shown in Fig. 1 of the drawings, each ofthe side joint plates 3 and 4 is fitted with what may be termed a oneend insulation. That is, with each of the plates 3 and 4 there isassociated a short length insulating sheet 20 arranged upon the innerface. of the nonsupporting end of the side plate, that is the end whichis not equipped with a base member or base plate for one of the railends. Hence, as clearly shown in Figs 4 and 5, each of the side plates 3and 4 is recessed at the head'and foot thereof, as indicated at 21, toadmit flush within the recessed portions, the short length insulatingsheet 20, which sheet of insulation is arranged at one end to overlapthe insulating end post 22 between the rail ends, and its bottom edge isformed with a pendent insulating lip 24 extending into the spacebetweeri the girder flange 14 and the opposing longitudinal edge 13 ofthe base plate 9 carried by the opposite side joint plate. 1

Various other modifications in both the'mechanical and insulatingfeatures of the herein described joints will suggest themselves to thoseskilled iii the art with out further description, and it will thereforebeunderstood that changes in the form, proportion, and minor.

details of construction may be resorted to without de I, 7 5

parting from the spirit or sacrificing any of the advantages of theinvention.

Iclaim. .i 1. In an insulated rail joint, the service rails, side anglebars engaging beneath the rail heads and each provided at its bottomedge with a'short length base plate for supporting one rail end only,and means for insulating one rail from the oth er.

2. In an insulated rail joint, the service rails,.side angle tegral baseplate for one rail end, and means for insulat-- ing one rail from theother.

' 3. In an insulated rail joint, the service rails, ide angle barsengaging beneath the rail heads and each of which is provided at its.bottom edge with an. integral short length base plate for one rail end,and means for insulating one rail from the other including an insulatingpiece between the separate base plates. I

4. In an insulated rail joint, the service rails, side angle barsengaging beneath the rail heads and each of which is'provided with ashort length baseplate :for one rail end,

and insulation between each rail end and'one end portion of one anglebar.

5. In an insulated rail joint, the service rails, side angle barsengaging beneath the rail heads and each of which is provided with ashort length integral base plate for one rail end, and a one-endinsulation for each angle bar, the

insulation for one angle bar being diagonally opposite that for theother.

6. In an insulated rail joint, the service rails,side angle barsengaging beneath thefrail heads and each of which is provided with anintegral short length base plate for one rail end, insulation betweenthe rail ends and'tlie angle bars, and transverse insulation between theinner ends of the base plates.

' 7. In an insulated rail joint, the combination with the rails andasingle track tie, of side bars engaging beneath the rail heads and eachprovided with a short length base plate for one rail end, and both ofsaid. plates being an ranged for support on said single tie, and meansfor insulating one rail from the other.

8. In an insulated rail joint, the combination with the rails and asingle track tie, of continuous side angle bars engaging beneath therail heads and each provided witha short length base platefor one railend, both of which plates are adapted to be carried on said tie,insulation between the angle bars and the rail sides and an insulatingpiece between the separate base plates. I

9. In an insulated rail joint, the service rails, side angle bursengaging beneath the rail heads and each of which is provided withashort length integral base plate for one rail end, and a one-eudinsulation for that part of each angle bar not provided with a baseplate.

.10. In an insulated rail joint, the rails, continuous side angle barsengaging beneath the rail heads and each of which is provided .with ashort length integral base plate for one rail end, each base'plate beingadapted to afiord one rail end a support on both sides of themeetingpoint of the rail ends, and means for insulating one rail from BENJAMINWOLHAUPTER.

Witnesses:

KATHERINE MeNALLr, E. F, Sci-rsmmnnorm.

